Sometimes
by laughing senseless
Summary: Matt needs Mello. Mello knows that. But in time, they will both realize that maybe Mello needs Matt too. Starts with Mello's arrival at Wammy's and will capture their adventures as the shy Matt and leather clad Mello begin to develop a unique friendship that will lead them to discoveries about themselves and each other. Slash Mello/Matt Rated M for Mello's foul language
1. Chapter 1

A few plot bunnies have been biting at my toes. I _had _to give in to an least one of them! So here's the result of that! I promise I'll try to update my other story _If You'll Stay _soon. Thanks for reading!

Disclaimer: I do not own.

Warning: This will end up as a slash fic in future chapters.

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Chapter One: Mello's Roommate

I thumbed through a well used dictionary idly as I listened to Rodger speak monotonously. "You will meet your roommate Matt eventually. After all, you will share a room together without altercation." There was a brief moment of silence as he looked expectantly at me in warning, taking in my leather jacket and dangerously low slung, shredded jean trousers. He cleared his throat, uncomfortable at the level gaze I focused on him as I looked up from the dictionary's untidy notes scrawled in the margins.

"If that's all," I hinted coldly.

"Yes, yes, I'll be heading out now. I'm needed elsewhere." He muttered, hastening to collect his coat and leave. "Welcome to Wammy's, Mello."

The door was left ajar as his footsteps scurried away hastily. I knew that even for a thirteen year old, my glare could frighten the majority of adults and children alike. I returned the dictionary to the shelf of books I had found it in. The titles piqued my interest as they ranged quite thoroughly into some intensive categories of study. Perhaps my roommate- Matt -and I would be able to get along well after all. I eyed the messy room with lazy, uninterested eyes before I strode through the doorway, intent on exploring the establishment. The younger students all gaped at me, a few daring to whisper excitedly to their friends. I shot them a glare, and they all scattered with cries of terror. The students my age simply pretended to not see me and firmly avoided my angry gaze as they shuffled away unhappily. I rolled my eyes, stalking away from the crowded hallway. Maybe I could find the library. The thought of being isolated in books sounded promising. As I continued walking, I easily caused every student to not interact with me. If the rumor mill could work its magic, then by the following week, no one should try befriending me. I turned a corner only to come to a stop as I examined the situation with an unimpressed tightening of my lips as I scowled.

A group of three boys were maliciously circling a boy with the reddest hair I've ever seen. They taunted him as they eagerly shoved him about to the others. _Geniuses_, I sneered, _This school was supposed to be above common idiots._ I watched as the apparent leader began trapping the boy with his body, firmly locking a leg around the boy's legs and yanking the boy's fire engine red hair to keep him immobile and submissive.

The boy cried out as his arm was painfully wrenched behind his back to secure that he couldn't escape. The gang snickered as their leader began whispering in the trembling boy's ear, gleeful promises of pain. The boy released a surprised noise as he was suddenly roughly shoved to the floor, his captured feet twisting as he fell.

My foot flew towards the bully's sneering face. The bully flew into the wall as I stepped out of the shadows. The group all stopped jeering and grew quiet as they froze, uneasy with my presence.

"Oh!" The boy was in a heap of tangled limbs on the floor as he turned to stare up at me. His eyes were wide underneath those goggles of his. He offered a strained smile as he ducked his head shyly and murmured a shaky "Thanks."

I offered a curt nod in his direction as I pushed my blonde hair out of my face. My eyes were focused on the gang of fearful boys silently watching me.

"The fuck you bothering him for?" I asked cooly, stepping forward to stand in front of the boy on the ground. I was eager to induce a conflict. I could take them all easily in a fight, and I was itching to go at them. The tension and stress from moving to Whammy's wasn't overwhelming, but a good fight was still promising to relieve some of that stress.

The group exchanged anxious looks as they waited for their leader to respond; their leader stood slowly and spit out a glob of blood before replying. "Matt's the dumbest kid here. He's ruining this place. He needs to be taught a lesson." The cogs whirled in my head as I realize this boy was my roommate, Matt. I took in the pitiful boy on the ground and mentally compared him to the profile I had been building. My eyes narrowed as something didn't add up quite right but I shoved those thoughts away for now. The leader stepped forward, his eyes narrowed in challenge as the other two grunted in agreement.

I scoffed, unimpressed. Then I flicked my lighter open and lit my cigarette, inhaling deeply before releasing a cloud of smoke in his face. I ignored his spluttering coughs as I spoke calmly. "Listen, this kid is _my _roommate now. So keep the fuck away from him. You'd have to be completely incompetent to fuck with him again. I don't care how dumb you think he is, you lowly piece of shit. But if you cross him again, you'll be dealing with me." I gave him a sharp grin as I dropped the nonchalant tone, "And next time, you're going to take a nice little trip to the hospital. If I see your ugly mugs anytime soon, I'll smash your faces in." I promised darkly. I inhaled my fag again before blowing out. "Now scram."

The guys scuffled away, nearly tripping over themselves as they tried to gain distance between me and them and still look casually unruffled at the same time.

Silence soon swept over the hallway as they diappearred. I sucked in one last breath of nicotine before using the wall to extinguish it. I shoved it in my pocket before walking over to stand above the kid. He was still on the ground, his eyes wide as he stared up at me. I stared down at him for a moment before grabbing his shoulders and hauling his skinny ass off the floor.

"What's your name?" I asked him after he just stood there in quiet awe, despite already knowing the answer.

His cheeks flushed pink as he dropped his eyes to the floor. He glanced back at me then dropped his gaze again as he whispered, "Matt."

"Mello." I stated simply before walking away. As I predicted, he began following me. His clumsy footsteps shadowed my brisk stride. The kids we passed all scuffled to the side of the hallway to clear a path for us as I scowled at them. One look at my leather clad body and fierce glare was all the motivation they needed. As we approached the room, I shot a glance over my shoulder as his footsteps hesitated. He was nervously clutching at the long sleeve of his oversized striped shirt and staring at his bare feet. I sighed.

"Well, come on." I said patiently, holding the door open for him. He slowly shuffled inside, his head darting around to examine the room. _Looking to see if his things were still there and intact, _I realized as his shoulders slumped in relief. He was bemusingly easy to read, even with those dorky goggles over his eyes. I locked the door behind me, not quite confident yet that the entire school heard to stay away.

I lit up my cigarette again as he anxiously stood in the middle of the room, his fingers twitching against the hem of his shirt. "Do you want a smoke?" I asked, offering my pack in his direction. He glanced at them before looking at me and them he slowly took one with shaking fingers. As I stepped forward with the lighter ready, he flinched. I ignored that and merely cupped his hands to steady them and lit his cigarette. I pulled away and put the lighter back in my trouser pockets, steadily inhaling delicious smoke. I waited to observe him before stating my mind. He expertly took a breath of his fag and didn't splutter or wheeze; he'd smoked before, and I felt amusement that this kid at least had some amount of rebellion in him even though he seemed to be younger than myself.

"So," I drawled casually, "Why are you hiding the fact that you're very intelligent?"

He froze.

My lips stretched into a grin of a cat who ate the canary. As expected, he avoided my gaze intently as he smoked silently and shook his head unconsciously.

"Not that I really care what you do, but why?" I carried on, amused as he tensed up further. "Are you afraid of what will happenbif you reveal you're smart? This is a school for geniuses. What's with the secrecy then? Did you have a bad beginning at this school?" He furiously devoured his cigarette in a trembling silence of nerves. "Were you afraid of being outcasted?" His eyes slid shut in a pained grimace. It was only a fraction of a moment, but my pride swelled as I hit the bullseye. I slumped on my bed, reclining happily. "Seems like that plan worked so well. Too well. Now you're bullied for being dumb, correct? Now you're in a situation you're not sure how to get out of, right?" He shakily sat on his bed, his lips desperately sucking the life out of his cigarette. I pulled out my ashtray from my bedside drawer and let my stump be smushed into ash as I killed it. "So, Matt," I smirked gleefully as he startled at my casual use of his name so suddenly. "Wanna hear my solution?"

He reached with an unsteady hand to kill his stump of a cigarette on my ashtray. It was the first motion he made willingly that went towards my direction. Small progress but still progress. He licked his dry lips and nodded mutely, his empty hands now once again fumbling with his shirt.

"You need me." I told him bluntly, propping my head up on my hand, which now rested on an elevated knee. "You're painfully shy and insecure," I carried on, not pausing when he recoiled at my words. "You need to do as well as you can do. You need to forget about pleasing anyone but yourself. You need to say 'fuck you' to everyone else. But since _you _can't, _I _will for you. You need to stick with me. And I'll let everyone know that if they wanna mess with you, they're automatically messing with me. Understand, yeah?"

The boy was quiet and pale. Then, "Why?"

"Why?" My eyebrows shot up. "We're roommates now. We protect each other and all that heartfelt shit. Any more questions?"

He was quiet once more before shaking his head.

"Good. 'Cause I'd like to fucking fall asleep now. G'night, Matt." I pulled up the covers and turned facing towards the wall. I shut my eyes and slowed my breathing.

A few minutes later, the lights were turned out. I smiled triumphantly as Matt whispered a "Good night, Mello" in reply. Then, as I heard his blanket's rustling stop, he murmured a drowsy, "Thank you, Mello." I closed my eyes happily.

I was going to break this kid out of his shell. Come heaven or hell, this was _my _roommate now. He was all I had left in the world now. So I'll make him view me as his world now too. I heard him softly snoring in the background, unaware of the plans I was paving for him.

"Why?" He had asked. I knew what his pathetically feeble defenses hid. I could see straight into his heart. He needed my protection. He needed my friendship. He was losing himself and needed help finding himself. He needed me. Once I had his acceptance, his intelligence would be at my disposal. Also, having a tosser of a roommate would have been terrible; so I'll take it for granted that I got stuck with someone I can manipulate into someone I'll be able to tolerate being around.

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So I hoped you enjoyed the start of this story! Updates will be slow, due to the fact that I want to prioritize my other story, _If You'll Stay,_ first, but I'll try to squeeze in updates whenever I can. Thanks for reading! ^-^


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters. I just take them out for a spin. xP

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Chapter 2: Matt's Roommate

I woke suddenly. I curled up into myself, winding the blanket tightly around me into a cocoon of shelter as the haunting memories of my nightmare slowly faded from my mind. I placed my hand over my racing heart, as if that would help calm it, to try and stop the lingering panic. I froze as the sounds of breathing reached my ears. I then inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly, trying to calm myself down as quietly as possible. A roommate, I remembered, I had a roommate now.

I peeked out of the covers quickly before dashing down again after seeing a flash of blonde.

A roommate that wanted to defend me. A roommate that wanted me to stop pretending that I'm stupid. He would protect me from anyone who had an issue with the sudden reveal of my intellect. Warmth flooded through me as I thought about how he had rescued me.

A roommate. My toes curled in excitement.

Mello.

"What?" The irritated and groggy voice made me realize with a jolt of horror that I had said the name aloud.

There was a sudden weight on my bed, the flimsy mattress dipping with a groan, and then I yelped as my covers were yanked off. His blue eyes were narrowed and alert as ge repeated himself, "What, Matt?"

"Um..." It was odd hearing someone say my alias without any malice. I was ignored by everyone but the bullies and Roger, who was always cross with me for performing horribly. "Hi." I murmured, watching as his eyebrow twitched in irritation.

"Hi." He deadpanned, still staring down at me with his calculating gaze. His fingers slowly lifted to trace the curve of my cheeks. They slid up and curled around my goggles, and I jerked away, scrambling to gain distance between us. He seized me by the back of my neck, and I helplessly tried to back up, but my back was pressed up against the white wall. His hands were on my goggles, and suddenly I felt naked as I squeezed my eyes closed. I could feel my body shaking as the fear coursed through me. I knew I was being pathetic, but I refused to open my eyes. No, no, no.

"Why do you wear these?" My new roommate asked curiously as he peeled them off my head entirely.

I opened my mouth to try and form a response, but I found it was too dry to reply and gave up to shake my head mutely.

"Matt."

I shook my head again, refusing to answer open my eyes.

"Fine." He snapped, dropping the goggles on my lap. My fingers scrambled for them and I clutched them to my chest in relief once I had the goggles in my grasp. I pulled them back on their rightful place and opened my eyes. A very irritated Mello was the sight before me, and I shyly looked away from his cold gaze.

The bed creaked due to the weight being relieved as Mello stood. Suddenly I was worried that I had lost his protection. Surely, surely he wasn't going to stand up for me anymore. Now that I'd lost him- so soon! -surely he would never again be my protecter. Why didn't I just respond to him? A small voice in my head answered why. I was afraid. And now, now...Terror flooded through me as a scenario played out in my mind. Mello might not only stop protecting me, but he might join in with the others! Now that he saw I was a burden!

"Well come on then."

Shocked, I lifted my bowed head to stare at him.

He was standing there with his hands shoved in his trouser pockets. He'd already changed and now wore a simple black tee with the same leather jacket pulled over.

"Come _on_, Matt and get dressed already. I want breakfast, and you're going to show me where to get some."

My eyes widened as I hastened to stand up, tripping over my sheet and hobbling to gain back my balance again. Mello raised an eyebrow, and I blushed, hurrying to change my outfit into a fresh one.

Mello scoffed at the checkered polo top I pulled over my head. "Don't you have any decent looking clothes?"

I blinked. "I don't pick out my clothes. Once in a while, they're just left in here for me. Whenever Roger thinks I need clothes, I suppose."

Mello gave the puce and khaki colored shirt a disgusted look as I zipped my jeans. "Well that explains everything. Roger's an old geezer. Jeez, kid, I'll talk to him about it. I'll make him come around."

"Really?" I was in awe. Style wasn't a necessity. And yet Mello was going to provide it for me by demanding it from Roger. I smiled widely as I pictured Mello lecturing Roger about clothes in the furious way he had told off my bullies.

"Breakfast is this way." I said, leading him down the hallway, pleased and grateful.

"I know."

"You know?" I asked in shock, my eyes wide at his response, and I was confused. Then why would he ask me to come along? I didn't understand.

"Of course." He sneered cockily, "I'm a genius."

"Then why am I here?" I blurted out, ignoring the sarcasm. Then I slapped my hand over my mouth as I feverently wished he didn't send me away.

He snorted. "You're here because you're too skinny. And it's obvious you don't eat enough. Too afraid of the crowd?" He sent me a contemplating glance over his shoulder.

"Just not hungry." I suppose I shouldn't have lied, but it made me feel irrationally embarrassed that he could tell why I often skipped meals.

He sent me a dubious look. "Sure."

He so easily saw through my pretenses. He could read my mind so blatantly that it frightened me. No one had ever been able to call me out on my bluff's before; they either didn't care or didn't realize I was lying. Mello was unraveling the defenses I had strung together to protect myself, to shield myself from outsiders. I didn't know what it meant that he so effortlessly could break down that barrier and understand me. In a way, it made my heart warm. But it also terrified me. How could a near stranger comprehend myself in a matter of hours more than my classmates had understood in years?

As I followed Mello with stumbling steps, my heart pounded.

Whether my heart's furious pace was due to excitement or terror, I'll never know.

Perhaps both.


	3. Chapter 3

Happy 12/12/12 everybody! (Well except for those who live in an area where it already happened.) I really wanted to get this out today, and I hope you enjoy it! Thanks for reading it and please review!

Disclaimer: I do not own.

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Chapter Three: Who The Fuck Cares If Chocolate Is Unhealthy?

Mello's POV

The sudden hush of the cafeteria made Matt's skin flush. I sneered at the students who were openly gaping at the sight of me, the new kid, and Matt, the recluse who had apparently deceived everyone into thinking he was an idiot. _They _were the idiots, not Matt. If they honestly couldn't realize that Matt was smart, then they must either be stupidly incompetent or completely oblivious. Perhaps both.

I walked over to the buffet tables and examined its contents as we grabbed trays. "Eggs, cereal, oatmeal, waffles..." I listed the options around us without any interest. Matt shuffled awkwardly behind me, his hands fiddling with his empty silver tray. "Ah ha!" I exclaimed joyously, and Matt jumped a bit. "Chocolate bars!" I placed one on my tray and stuffed a few in my pockets, thankful towards those who put chocolate in their crepes or on their waffles and needed it to be offered. Matt watched me with a shocked look, and I merely raised an eyebrow at him. "Do you want some, Matt?"

"Um...for breakfast?" Matt asked uncertainly as he tucked his red curls behind his left ear.

I rolled my eyes. "Yes, for breakfast. And we'll grab a slice of cake too." I snatched his tray and placed it under my own. I just used my tray to grab him a chocolate bar that rested against mine and two slices of the cinnamon cake glazed with icing- one for each of us -and two forks. "Well, come on, Matt." I said amusedly as he began fidgeting with his ugly shirt now that his hands were empty. "Let's go eat our breakfast. Grab those two milks would you, love?"

His whole face burned red, and I snickered. His fingers nearly dropped the milks, but he managed to hold on to them as I guided us to an empty table.

I patted the seat next to me, but Matt had his gaze focused on the floor and didn't see. He sat in the chair across from me, but I didn't honestly care what chair he picked. But having him sit across from me like this reminded me of two people on a date, and I thought it was funny and ironic that he was a blushing mess.

I began eating the cake, delighting in the sweet taste. Matt hesitated but then leaned forward to scoop a bite into his mouth just as I finished mine. He smiled widely and began eating it vigorously. I opened my chocolate bar and snapped off a piece to munch on, entertained by watching the redhead devour his cake with a smile. I sipped at my milk leisurely, and Matt chugged his in a few great gulps between bites off his cake.

I hadn't expected someone would be so bold as to approach us on the first meal. However, a blond girl with pigtails and a frilly purple dress came marching up to our table and stopped with her hands folded across her chest as she looked down at us.

"You do realize you aren't making healthy eating choices." She said frowning. "I ate oatmeal for breakfast with orange juice. A meal like that gives energy and nutrients and vitamins that are essential to a growing child, unlike the junk you two are eating. In fact, did you know..."

The blond girl continued rambling on about the negative effects chocolate can have on the human body, and she began babbling lists of reasons of why we should not eat chocolate at all, let alone in the morning.

I felt my eyebrow twitch.

Matt eyed me and then the girl nervously as he opened his mouth to say something before biting his lip and opting to stay silent. Instead he finished off his cale and started nibbling on his chocolate bar.

She lamented further with her hands perched on her hips. "Even though Matt doesn't usually eat breakfast, it'd be better to skip the meal entirely than to just eat junk food like that, and a newcomer like you shouldn't drag his roommate down with him and instill bad habits in someone like Matt, who is obviously not mentally capable of realizing what harm you're doing. Chocolate is unhealthy, and-"

"Who the fuck cares if chocolate is unhealthy?" I snarled, standing up to tower over her. She blinked in shock and took an uneasy step back. "Matt is more intelligent than you are. At least _he _knows when to shut up. _You_ just keep flapping your large mouth and yakking on about shit you don't know anything about. Tell me, bitch, what is you ranking?"

She gaped like an unattractive carp before bristling. "I am not a bitch!" She shrieked. "And I'll have you know I'm in the top twenty!"

I tsked in an unimpressed way. "Matt could beat you any day."

She spluttered. "That's ridiculous! Matt's the dumbest kid here! He's so dumb that- Ah..." She glanced at Matt as she realized that he could hear her and she had obviously forgot that he was even here. "I mean..."

She awkwardly looked away from him before she started glaring at me after I sneered, "Bitch."

"I am not a bitch!"

I snorted. Then I took a bite of my chocolate bar with a loud 'crack!' that caused her to wince. "You're not a bitch? Tell that to Matt."

She shuffled her feet uncomfortably, and I smirked victoriously. I began striding away before pausing. "Come on, Matt." I called over my shoulder easily, "Let's go enjoy the company of civilized, decent folks." He scampered up and over to me quickly.

"Wait! What about your trays?!" She cried out after us indignantly.

"Be a dear and bring them in for us, yeah?" I sent a coy wink and snickered as her face flushed red. I grabbed Matt's wrist and yanked him after me as we made our escape.

"Geez, what a bitch." I laughed once we had traveled quickly to our room. I flopped down on my bed

Matt didn't laugh along with me.

I turned and looked at him. He was worrying his lip between his teeth and not looking at me as he sat nervously on his bed.

"Matt? What's wrong?" I asked, frowning.

He licked his lips before saying quietly, "Linda's ranked number eighteen, Mello."

"Who?"

"The girl-"

"Oh, you mean the bitch." I laughed.

He remained quiet.

"So...?" I asked, willing him to get to the point already.

"If I just suddenly beat her," He said, clearly upset, "It'll look suspicious. People will know I've been...well, I've been..."

"Doing poorly on purpose." I shrugged unsympathetically. "It had to come out sometime. You're smart, Matt. You need to show them that."

He shrugged noncommitingly. "I guess." He finally looked at me, his eyes large under his colored goggles. "What did you place on your entry test?" He asked uncertainly.

I grinned. "You know I'm not supposed to tell until the next results are posted."

"I know." He murmured, ducking his head sheepishly, twiddling his two pointer fingers.

"But what are secrets between friends?" I smirked as his head shot up to look at me again. "I placed number two, Matt. And I'm going to number one soon, I know it."

"Wow." He softly said. "Number two out of everybody."

"Yup." I gloated smugly. "I'm just that amazing, Matt."

"And you're going for number one?" The look in his eyes was odd.

"Absolutely. If it kills me." I exaggerated pleasantly.

"I'll stick by you." Matt declared, "I'll root for you."

I sent an amused smile his way. "Thanks, Matt."

His cheeks began flooding with color, and he broke eye contact by staring at the carpet relentlessly

"You're welcome, Mello." He murmured happily.


End file.
